


round two

by starlight_sugar



Category: Easy Allies RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-12
Updated: 2016-12-12
Packaged: 2018-09-08 01:27:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8824702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starlight_sugar/pseuds/starlight_sugar
Summary: Ben, you have one new match! Swipe to see who it is! (A Hinckmoore Tinder AU.)





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is a fictional story involving fictional likenesses of real people. Easy Allies do not have my permission to use any portion of my work in their content.
> 
> This fic was written as part of the EZA Secret Santa exchange on Tumblr! It's for Myles @minibosman, and they requested something Ben-centric, possibly with Ian/Ben. Merry Secret Santa, Myles! Hope this is enough Ben for you! <3

By the sixth time Ben opens Tinder on his phone, he still hasn’t matched with anyone. Which probably isn’t unusual, all told. It’s not like he has enough experience with Tinder to know otherwise, and it’s also not like he’s swiping right a lot.

“You have high standards,” Huber tells him offhand, when Ben mentions the match issue. “Not like that’s a bad thing, it just means fewer dates, probably.”

“I don’t think I can go on fewer dates than the zero I’m already having,” Ben answers, and checks Tinder again. “Why’d I get this app?”

“Because I told you to.” Huber leans over Ben’s shoulder. “What’s your profile like?”

“I haven’t changed it since you helped me set it up.”

“Yeah, but that was three days ago, I don’t remember that far back.”

Ben rolls his eyes and swipes over to his profile. It’s a pretty basic bio: name, job, cutesy joke, a couple of decent pictures including one that Huber had made him take the day they made the profile. “This is a pointless app,” he says.

“Eh.” Huber shrugs, close enough that Ben can feel it. “Are you having fun looking at the weird profiles?”

“Not really.”

Huber pauses. “Then maybe Tinder isn’t for you.”

“Not all of us can meet our cute nerdy soulmates on dating apps,” Ben points out. He’d been more than happy to give it a try when Huber suggested it, partly because he thought it’d be fun, and partly because he’s pretty sure Huber actually did find his soulmate through Tinder. He and Kyle were practically meant to be, and it’s hard not to want something like that. He didn’t realize it’d be even harder to find something like that.

When Ben looks back at Huber, he has that same melty, dreamy look he always has when someone brings up Kyle. “I did get lucky,” he says.

Ben would roll his eyes, but it’s actually pretty cute. Instead, he shakes his head. “I haven’t yet,” he says, but he looks down at Tinder, still open on his phone. Yet. Maybe the key word is yet.

#

_ Yesenia, 29. 10 miles away. Game of Thrones fanatic, let me be your khaleesi ;) _

Ben swipes left. She’s cute enough, but he doesn’t think he’s ready to commit to calling another person his khaleesi anytime soon.

_ Chelsea, 27. 11 miles away. I love my cats more than life itself. _

Ben swipes left. He’s pretty sure his thumb is going to cramp if this keeps going.

_ Nickole, 32. 7 miles away. Pisces. I’m a freelance marketing agent. Swipe right if you like coffee! _

Ben swipes left. It’s less about the coffee and more about how he’s not sure he remembers which direction right is anymore. He’s already mid-swipe when he sees the name on the next profile.

_ Ian, _ it says, and he blinks down at it. Ben hasn’t met many Ians in his life, other than the incomparable Ian he knew in middle school. That Ian was one of the people that was so all-encompassing that he became the name, as far as Ben was concerned. There wasn’t another Ian in the world. There was only the bold, floppy-haired twelve-year-old, Ben’s first crush. And then Ben’s first heartbreak, when Ian moved away at the end of their eighth grade year, but still someone that teenage Ben obsessed over.

This Ian has the same eyes as Ben’s Ian, and after a moment of pause, he taps on the profile.

_ Trans lady, _ the description says.  _ The world is probably ending, so you might as well swipe right. Also, we can play video games, if that’s your thing. _

Ben stares down at the picture. Ian’s eyes stare back.

The worst that happens is that he’s wrong, he decides. The worst that happens is he’s wrong, and this woman with the beautiful eyes isn’t middle school Ben’s dream crush, and she’s still charming on her own.

Ben swipes right and holds his breath. It’s not a match.

“I tried,” he mutters to himself, and closes Tinder. Maybe it’s just not meant to be.

#

Ben, you have one new match! Swipe to see who it is!

Ian sent you three new messages!

Ian (11:57 PM): hey so this is probably weird but did we go to middle school together?

Ian (11:57 PM): like, it’s totally fine if I’m imagining things

Ian (11:58 PM): but you look EXACTLY like someone I knew when I was a kid and I had to ask

Ben (7:19 AM): I mean, I thought you looked like someone I knew in middle school

Ben (7:20 AM): So either we know each other or this is the weirdest coincidence

Ian (8:01 AM): Ben Moore?

Ben (8:04 AM): yep

Ian (8:05 AM): holy shit

Ian (8:06 AM): hi it’s Ian Hinck

Ben (8:08 AM): Yeah I guessed

Ben (8:08 AM): So how’ve you been for the past fifteen or twenty years

Ian (8:09 AM): oh god has it been that long

Ben (8:10 AM): If my math is right then yes

Ben (8:10 AM): I suddenly feel old

Ian (8:11 AM): new rule, no more talking about how old we are

Ian (8:12 AM): catching up is okay though

Ian (8:12 AM): tell me all about professional journalism, Ben

Ben (8:13 AM): Is that really the most interesting thing we can talk about?

Ben (8:13 AM): Out of all the catching up we can do?

Ian (8:14 AM): well

Ian (8:14 AM): it’s your job

Ian (8:14 AM): so it’s probably important and I want to hear about it

Ian (8:15 AM): tell me all about 2016 Ben, I haven’t met him yet

Ben (8:16 AM): But you want to?

Ian (8:18 AM): hell yeah, I want to

#

“I can’t believe you’re on  _ Tinder, _ ” someone says.

Ben slams his phone down on his desk, but he already knows it’s too late. He sighs and turns to face Jones, who’s smirking harder than Ben knew he was physically capable of smirking. “It’s just a conversation.”

“Just a conversation,” Jones repeats, in that carefully toneless voice that means that he’s actually mocking the shit out of Ben. “Good conversation?”

“Pretty good.”

“His phone’s been lighting up all day,” Huber says; he’s leaning back so far in his desk chair that he’s almost horizontal, but he still has the same let’s-make-fun-of-Ben glint in his eyes that Jones does. “It’s been amazing that he’s getting any work done.”

“And I am,” Ben says quickly.

Jones waves him off. “I trust you to get your work done, that’s not a problem. I just can’t believe our Ben met someone on Tinder.”

“Well, not really,” Ben says before he can stop himself. And he wants to backtrack, except Jones and Huber are both looking at him expectantly now, so he sighs. “It’s actually someone who I used to be friends with.”

“Used to?” Huber repeats. “When?”

Ben looks back to his phone, but it’s still face-down on his desk. No escape route there. “Middle school.”

“Middle school,” Jones repeats in amazement. “You found one of your old middle school friends… on Tinder?”

“Social media is a cool thing,” Huber says. “Also, whoever she is, Ben likes her a lot.”

“I don’t,” Ben starts, and then stops himself. That’s just not true. “I might?”

“Do you have a date planned?” Jones asks, with exactly the level of genuine caring interest that Ben expected.

Also as expected, he’s not really sure how to deal with that interest, so he shrugs. “Not yet, but-”

“Ask her out,” Huber says decisively.

“I haven’t seen her in-”

“Ask her out.”

“But-”

Huber makes an exasperated noise, but before he can say anything else, Jones cuts in. “Do you want to see her?”

Ben looks at Jones, who watches him earnestly. “Yes,” he says, a little warily.

“Then ask if she wants to go out for coffee or a beer or something.”

“And she’ll say yes,” Huber adds.

“And why’s that?” Ben asks, even though he’s pretty sure that Ian will say yes if he invites her out to coffee. He wants to hear the rationale for this.

“One-” Huber lifts one finger. “Because you’ve been talking to her all day, which means she’s been talking back, and that means she’s interested. And two-” a second finger- “you’re Ben fucking Moore. She’s gonna say yes.”

“I don’t think that being Ben fucking Moore is impressive when she knew me as a scrawny, zitty pre-teen,” Ben says dryly, but he picks up his phone anyways. Coffee sounds nice. He already has three new messages from Ian.

“Well, that’s an even better sign, isn’t it?” Jones says as Ben unlocks his phone.

Ben pauses. “What is?”

“That she knew you as a scrawny, zitty pre-teen and still likes you.” Jones grins. “That means she’s a keeper.”

Jones leaves, presumably to go back to his work, and out of the corner of his eye Ben can see Huber sitting upright in his chair.

“Huh,” Ben says, and starts tapping out a coffee invitation.

#

Ian hugs Ben about as soon as he walks into the cafe, pulling him into her arms with a fierceness that doesn’t seem to have dimmed from when she was twelve years old.

“Hi,” Ben laughs as Ian wedges her forehead into the crook of his neck. He lets his hands flatten against the planes of her shoulders, pull her closer against him.

“I used to be taller than you,” Ian mutters, her breath warm against Ben’s neck. “This is weird.”

“Yeah, that’s the weird part about this,” Ben agrees.

Ian snorts out a laugh and takes a step back to look Ben up and down, hands still resting lightly on his waist. “You look good.”

“Thanks,” Ben says, for lack of anything else to say. “You too.” It’s true: her hair is straight, and she’s wearing comfortable clothes, and her eyes are just as damn bright as he remembered.

Ian beams at him. “C’mon, let’s get something to drink and we can catch up in person, not just over Tinder.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Ben answers, and lets Ian hook one of her arms through his and lead him to the line.

And the thing is, as Ian leads him through the line and orders her drink and laughs at Ben’s hot chocolate with espresso, as they chat and make conversation - the thing is, it’s easy. It’s completely effortless to spend time with Ian, even though it’s been such a long time since they did it last. It’s the easiest thing in the world to make her laugh, which is lucky, because that’s all he wants to do.

So naturally, as soon as they’re both sitting with their drinks, Ben blurts out, “Can I say something kind of embarrassing?”

Ian raises her eyebrows. “Yeah, I mean, if you want to, go for it.”

“Well,” Ben says, and tries to think of a way to backtrack so he doesn’t have to. There’s no exit ahead. He should’ve known. “I definitely had a giant crush on you in middle school.”

Ian freezes, coffee midway to her mouth. “Really,” she says, voice not quite flat.

“Uh.” Shit. “Yeah. I did.”

“Huh,” Ian says. “Can I say something even more embarrassing?”

“I don’t know if you can think of anything more embarrassing than that,” Ben mutters.

Ian huffs out a laugh. “No, uh, I was going to say, not only did I have a crush on you in middle school, I’m pretty sure I still have a crush on you now.”

_ Oh. _

“Oh,” Ben says, and suddenly his heart is in his throat. Ian with the beautiful eyes had a crush on him. What are the odds.

“Is that-” Ian clears her throat, and Ben blinks until he’s tethered to reality again. Ian looks nervous. “Is that okay?”

“That’s better than okay,” Ben answers truthfully. “I wish you would’ve said something earlier, I would’ve paid for your drink.”

“Aww!” Ian grins, a full-on eye-crinkling grin, and rests one of her hands on the table. “Ben, you gentleman, you.”

“I’ll pay for the next date,” Ben promises, and lays his hand on top of Ian’s. She immediately tangles her fingers with his and squeezes. “So, uh, middle school, huh? How about that?”

“Oh, it was bullshit,” Ian says cheerfully, but she looks at their joined hands and softens. “But you always made it better.”

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this fic you can drop me a line on Tumblr @pervincetosscobble or on Twitter @jazfiute. Thanks for reading!


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